Hymn to the NightMare
by Foxwind
Summary: [Chapters 1-5 edited 3-28-05] Post-WW; Three years after WW, Link, Tetra, and the pirates find themselves shipwrecked via renegade Goddess on the Goddess Isles, where they run into Shiek. Chaos ensues. Will be slashyaoi
1. Chapter 1

Author's Notes: This has been created out of the deep dark desire to slash the Wind Waker timeline. Given my belief that Zelda and Sheik are not the same person ((They lie, I tell you! Lie:shakes fist in denial: )), I really wanted Sheik to just pop up in WW. It would have made things interesting. I don't have anything against WW. It was a fun game, even if I didn't get to finish it due to the GC being ripped from my clutches by the person I "borrowed" it from. Given that, I don't know the exact ending… Inconsistencies galore! Feel free to tell me of them, and I'll attempt to change the story to fit it. I got hold of a script… and it actually has helped me with various questions on how to do this story… but anywho, I am now giving in to my slashy fangirl desires to somehow integrate Sheik ((and maybe DisassociativeIdentityDisorder!Link :snickers: there's, like, four of them)) into this timeline. I've been hoping someone else would do it for me, cuz I'm lazy lazy lazy, but I can't wait anymore, so please forgive my lack of talent as a writer. :bows and begs forgiveness: This is my first attempt at a fic that's more than a piddly one-shot. I hope y'all give this a chance and enjoy it!

Rating: Eh… I'll figure it out sometime. PG-13 for now.

Pairings: Sheik/Link, Link/Link, Link+Zelda/Tetra (…not for long…. Mwahahahahaha)

Summary: Going with the assumption that Zelda and Sheik are not one and the same, where's Sheik, and what is he up to? ...and villains and fun things involving the Night-Mare in the title.

Disclaimer: Legend of Zelda is not mine. If it was, it would become the best made rp/action/adventure porno game ever released. It instead belongs to someone who has a name that no matter how many times I read or hear it I can't remember. Also the song "Hymn to the Night-Mare" belongs to Mercedes Lackey and Leslie Fish and is supposedly inspired by Diane Duane's "Tale of Five" (Which I SO need to get. Duane rocks.).

Extra Note: For your mental eye's sake… pretend that this is uber-spiffy drool worthy cg LoZ and not uber-spiffy but not sek-say cell animation? …I like OOT Link's hair better anyways… he has that hair now. :feels shallow:

Extra Extra Note: ….anyone wanna beta? Pwetty pwease?

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Chapter 01-

The Wind blew softly through his open window, carrying the briny smell of the sea and the soothing scent of a pending storm. It rustled frayed curtains through a cracked-open window, and upon it rode the remnants of a haunting melody:

_"…if i see her again _

_i__ must die or kill _

_in__ the bleak dark wood _

_on__ the slumbering hill…"_

Sheik lay awake, panting from his dreams of fire and a familiar form lying broken on the shore, as the sweat dried on his still quivering body. He lay listening to the Wind's song:

_"…when the year wears down_

_and__ the trees are bare_

_in__ the form of an upright _

_white-fanged__ mare_

_for__ where she appears_

_death__ is on the air_

_and__ someone in sight_

_must__ die…"_

The faint words became indecipherable as the squall blew in, rain beating on the window like war-drums and dripping down off the windowsill to splatter like so much spilt blood onto the wooden floor. He was only able to catch a couple words, a phrase or two:

_"...dark… nine fold… thighbone staff... crown… light… hoof… heaven's vault…"_

And, in a lull of the storm, the last stanza hung hauntingly in his ears:

_"…she will dance in flame_

_'til the stars cry halt_

_and__ all but a few_

_shall__ die…"_

A crack of lightning made him yelp and throw the sheets over his head, soft tremors shaking his body, the melody whispering teasingly in his ears as the storm quickly died away leaving nothing but the sound of the waves crashing upon the shore.

He pulled the sheets down from over his head, and wrapped his arms around a ragged stuffed keaton that had seen better days. Sheik turned it around till the scratched button eyes faced him and sighed.

"Keaton, why did they have to make me a Prophet this time?"

Sheik didn't know how he had been able to fall back to sleep, but it seemed a mere instant later that the sun was shining too brightly in his eyes. He stretched lazily and yawned, his splayed out limbs sending Keaton to the ground. Lady Ira would not be pleased with him. The Priestess of Farore was a hard task-worker and believed that all of her wards should be up and working at the crack of dawn, if not sooner.

He sight and rolled out of bed. It took all of a minute to straighten the sheets and set Keaton in his place of honor on the pillow. By rights Sheik knew he should feel silly having a stuffed animal, but he justified it because the body he was in was still young, barely thirteen. He tossed off his patched nightshirt and quickly threw on a pair of hand-me-down shorts and a tank-top that was too big. One couldn't be picky about their clothes in the Temple's orphanage.

"SHEIK!"

Sheik winced.

"SHEIK! Get your WORTHLESS ass down here and earn your keep like everyone else!"

He'd heard this many times before and knew the entire speech by heart, it was almost a ritual. He spoke it to himself as Lady Ira yelled up the stairs from the kitchen. "All the others are already out doing their chores. Just because you've been here longer than anyone else doesn't mean you can shirk your duties! So grab your broom and sweep the alter room NOW, boy!"

Sheik leapt nimbly down the stairs and grabbed the broom that was waiting in Lady Ira's hands. She fondly ruffled his hair as he took it from her, and he playfully swatted at her feet with the bristles.

"Little scamp," she muttered with a smile.

He grinned roguishly at her and headed outside through the gardens and the brush towards the Temple Proper.

It sometimes amazed him how much he had changed in this new life. The more Sheik thought about it, the more he realized that the break from lives of constant training was a good thing, even if it meant he had to suffer the dreams that were sent to him and the Wind always murmuring in his ear. He felt he could spread his wings and grow in a way he hadn't been able to, stifled as he had been with the Sheikah in his past incarnations.

The Sheikah were gone now, as was everything he was familiar with. It had been hundreds of years since his last incarnation as guide for the Hero of Time. The changes since then were heartbreaking. Hyrule was no more, lost beneath the sea. It had been three years since the Wind told him that it was gone forever, nothing but a mass of ruins that would never again see sunlight instead of the carefully shielded relic it had been. Sheik looked down at his hand and the shining Triforce now engraved on it. On that day the Triforce had fallen from the sky to him. He smiled. As long as the Triforce existed, so would Hyrule, if only in spirit.

The Wind said the Hylian race still survived, though he had yet to see any. No races other than human lived in the Goddess Isles, the three islands of Dima, Sonia, and Keena. No Zora, no Goron, no Kokiri. The only variety in intelligent life was him and the odd Keaton that showed up to throw everyone for a loop. He had kept his Hylian long ears and pointed features along with his own distinctive red eyes and pale complexion. He always looked the same, and was rather pleased with how he looked when he allowed himself any vain thoughts. However, Sheik felt so colorless and washed out compared to the richly tanned people of this place. If they had red hair, he would have sworn they were Gerudo, except Wind had told him of the death of their tribes.

It had been thirteen years since he had washed up on the shore of Keena, the Island of Farore, wrapped with his old harp in a threadbare Sheikah tunic; when Lady Ira showed it to him years later he had recognized the Eye of Truth carefully embroidered on the front. He'd been found by her as she walked along the shore hunting for shellfish with her many adopted children. He had no doubt this was Fate. The Goddesses wouldn't take the trouble to conjure him a body only to have it drown or starve before he could do any good.

Lady Ira claimed that when she first looked upon him Farore had whispered his name in her ear and asked her to take care of him. She used this argument whenever any of the islanders decided he was devil spawn and had to be done away with. Much to Sheik's amusement, and Lady Ira's exasperation, this happened fairly often. He figured it was the red eyes. In the human mind, red eyes equaled a demonic nature. How surprised they would be if they found out that in his case it was the exact opposite.

He walked into the Temple of Farore and breathed in the air with reverence. Every breath was so much richer in here, smelling faintly of pine and cinnamon. Upon Alter on the far side of the Temple a flawless bloodstone pulsed with a green glow in recognition. Sheik smiled faintly and waved at it, as if it were Farore herself. For all he knew it could be, and not just an afterimage of her power.

He hummed a sprightly little tune as he swept dust and debris from the storm out the Temple entrance, pausing only for a moment to laugh quietly as he recognized the song as the Forest Sage's from so long ago.

The Wind ruffled his hair as he stepped back outside, broom slung over his shoulder, and he closed his eyes to listen. "Visitors today," he muttered to himself. Sheik started back down the overgrown stone path towards the living quarters.

He arrived quickly, mostly because he hadn't had breakfast yet, and grabbed a sweetroll before Lady Ira could rap his knuckles with her infamous spoon. "The Wind said we're going to have visitors," he said casually before shoving about half the roll into his mouth. Sheik had never hid his ability to hear the Wind from her, trusting that she would keep it to herself.

"Hmmm," she said while stirring a pot of stew, "I guess that means you'll have to pick more vegetables from the garden. And why don't you weed it too?"

Sheik groaned. "But-"

She turned around and shook her spoon at him. "No 'buts' young man! Your fingers won't be too blistered to play that damn harp and you can train later."

It was times like this that Sheik found it difficult to believe that she was a Priestess and not a fisherman's wife in disguise, but then Farore and Din's Priestesses had always been a bit feisty. It was Naryu who got the dull ones, and it was Naryu's followers that he was used to.

He laughed to himself and swallowed the rest of the roll. "Fine, fine." He made a show of slowly getting up and stretching as if this was the hardest task in the world and stood on his toes to kiss her cheek as she kept stirring the pot before he sprinted off to the gardening shed behind the kitchen.

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_"…the Hero this way comes…"_

Sheik froze in the middle of the potato patch as the Wind spoke to him, his spade now lying half-forgotten in the dirt. "…Link?" There had always only been one "Hero."

_"…on flame he rides…"_

He frowned, wondering what the Wind meant. The Hero of Flames had not yet been born, and Sheik prayed he never would be. He dusted off his knees as he stood, and, with a sigh, lifted the basket of potatoes and carrots he'd dug up for that night's stew. Sometimes Sheik wished that the Wind would speak clearly to him. It would have been much easier to be a Prophet for Naryu. Her Water provided images which, while sometimes misleading, made more sense that the Winds murmurs.

As he made his way out of the gardens, wiping sweat from his brow with the bottom of his shirt, he heard someone stumbling up the old, wooden stairs leading to the orphanage, their heavy footsteps echoing hollowly in the space between the wood and the rocky hillside. Frantic screaming soon reached his ears as the person, a young girl from the sound if it, got close enough to orphanage for their voice to be heard inside.

"Lady Ira! Lady Ira! A ship- _on fire!"_Her voice cracked as she yelled.

Sheik dropped his basket and dashed for the Temple's arched entryway to hear more, a sense of dread knotting up his stomach. He got there at the same time as the girl and Lady Ira.

The girl collapsed from exhaustion and clutched at Lady Ira's robe. "Please- on the shore… there are people on the shore… we can't help them!"

The other children of the orphanage were showing up to see what was happening. There were only five. Lady Ira couldn't take care of any more by herself. Sheik saw Nehri, older by him than a year and just beginning her apprenticeship to become a Priestess, coming from the kitchen with some water for the messenger.

Lady Ira frowned. "Sheik, stay here and guard the Temple. There could be pirates near. Nehri, get the bandages and herbs. Anything we have for burns. Yin, get towels and blankets to dry them with." A small girl turned and ran back to the orphanage. "The rest of you, get the extra beds ready and set out lots of bowls and bring in lots of water from the well."

Sheik rose to go get his weapons from his room. He wouldn't be getting his practice weapons. Instead he'd be getting his metal-tipped bo-staff and a chain whip that he took great pride in. It had taken years of odd jobs in the main village to get enough money for the smith to make it for him, and even then Lady Ira had to formally order the man to do it, carefully explaining that, no, Sheik was _not_ going to use them to wreak havoc on the village and yes he could handle them without poking someone's eye out.

He walked up to his room and took both weapons, along with a plethora of throwing knives, out from a compartment he'd made in the floor. Sheik all but purred when he felt the cold, solid weight of the whip in his hands. It had been far too long since he'd been in battle. Bard, and now Prophet, though he was, he could not deny that he enjoyed a good fight. He tied the knife sheaths around his arms and legs and folded up the whip so he could put it in a special pouch on his thigh. Lastly he picked up his bo and left his room, trotting down the stairs and out the kitchen to stand guard at the entrance of the Temple Proper.

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"Hold him still!"

"I can't! He won't stop- _shit!_"

Sheik easily heard the commotion long before the group arrived. He took that as a sign that it was okay to stop guarding the Temple Proper. He rested the bo on his shoulder and made his way back to the orphanage to see what was going on. The wind playfully caressed his ears.

_"…the Hero…"_

_"…………our Master…"_

_"…the Hero arrives…"_

_"…Master……arrived…"_

_"…is here…"_

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AN: And thus ends the first chapter of my monstrous plot-bunny.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: …oh boy. Part 2. This now officially makes it my first multi-part fanfic. I've got a couple ideas on how I want this to go, a few scenes in my head, but I'm mostly writing by the seat of my pants. I hope that I don't write myself into a corner. -.-;;

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Chapter 2-

Sheik couldn't help but be amused as he walked onto the scene. Apparently Lady Ira and one of the women from the village had carried someone, who could only be Link, up from the beach on a stretcher. And now Lady Ira was sitting on him, only barely managing to keep him from throwing her off.

"Sheik, be a good lad and sit here with me."

Sheik laughed. "I'll take the legs." He walked over and sat down on Link's shins. He peered around Lady Ira to look at Link, who was red-faced with frustration. Link looked exactly as he remembered, albeit a couple years younger. He had the same vast blue eyes and gold hair and skin that refused to tan like Sheik's own. However, he was missing the Kokiri garb, though he was wearing something similar, still the familiar green and white. "How did you even get him up here?"

"He _was _unconscious 'til about halfway up the stairs. And then he woke up. And now," she gestured behind her to Link's head, "he's being a hellion."

The village woman was struggling to keep Link's arms pinned. "Aye, and he's a strong one at that."

"A strong one that'll make his injuries worse if he gets up and runs around like an idiot."

Sheik tilted his head. "What injuries?" There was nothing he could see, and Link certainly didn't look like he was in any pain.

Lady Ira shifted back a little and pulled aside her robe to reveal a thick square of cloth pressed against Link's stomach. She pealed it up carefully, revealing a gaping wound. "He almost impaled himself on a piece of wood."

Sheik hissed in sympathy. He looked over at Link again, who was trying to glare a hole in Lady Ira's back. "With a nasty wound like that, why are you trying to get up?"

"Finally someone tries to talk to me!"

Lady Ira swiveled around on his chest to face him and poked his shoulder emphatically. "You weren't giving us much choice, thrashing around like that."

Link groaned and thumped his head on the ground in frustration and defeat. "Just tell me, did you find a girl down there?"

The village woman let go of his arms, nodded, and gestured towards her head casually. "She got a nasty bump on her head, but nothing serious. She was still unconscious when we brought you up here. The bird-man's watching her." She stood up. "I should go back." She looked at Sheik. "You can help with the rest here, right?" she asked, and trotted down the stairs without waiting for an answer.

Lady Ira looked down at him. "If I get up, will you start acting up again?"

Link looked back up and shook his head resignedly.

"Good." She got off him. Sheik stood up as well. "Sheik, help me carry him in."

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Sheik walked quietly down to the village's inn, The Gilded Fish, and adjusted the cloth sack on his shoulder. He had gone down to the beach to see if anyone was still there, and all he saw were a couple of men lifting what looked to be, to his delight, a Biggoron Sword from the battered wreckage of the single remaining longboat. They'd told him that everyone who'd survived the shipwreck without serious injuries was staying in the inn, that being the only place that could comfortably hold them all, whilst those who needed careful treatment had been carried to the Temple.

He was very curious to see how the Princess had changed in this life.

Sheik pushed open the worn imported mahogany door and stepped inside. He spotted the innkeeper and weaved through the dockworkers who were enjoying their mid-day break with a cool drink in the Fish's tavern.

He tugged lightly on the man's sleeve. "Could you tell me what rooms the people from the ship are in?"

The innkeeper looked down at him, annoyed. The man was one of the many in the village who didn't have a fondness for him. "Upstairs. Doors on the left," he grunted. "If I 'ear any complaints, yer not comin' back, 'ear?"

Sheik nodded and ran up the stairs. The Wind trilled around him and lightly rattled the left-hand door at the end of the narrow hallway. Sitting by the door was a boy about his age who had… a beak? A Rito, then, like the Earth Sage the Wind had told him of. This was the first time he'd ever seen one. They were such a new race.

The boy looked up and glared at him as he walked closer. "What do you want?"

"I'm here to check on her." He motioned to the door with his head. "I'm from the Temple of Farore on behalf of Lady Ira." He lifted the cloth sack he was carrying. "And I have food I'm certain your Lady will like more than the inn's fare."

The boy gave him a measuring look. "You're not telling me everything," he said after a moment. A statement, not a question.

Sheik smiled a little sheepishly. "No. There's things I need to talk to her about, if she's who I think she is. I can't say more."

The boy stood up and gazed at the floor in thought. "I'll let you in, but I'm coming too. If Captain Tetra doesn't want me there, she'll say. She's probably still asleep, so if you wake her up I'll take it out of your hide myself."

Sheik paused. 'Tetra'? But the Wind had led him to this door. It would be foolish of him to start doubting it now over a name, no matter how meaningful names could be.

The Rito boy quietly opened the door and they stepped inside. Aside from a desk and a couple of chairs, there was only one small bed in the room. The light coming in from the window brightly illuminated the girl who was still slumbering in it.

Sheik got the shock of his life when he padded closer to get a better look at her. Though the face remained the same, this was _nothing_ like any of the Princess Zelda's he had known. Her skin was tanned and weathered and her long hair, done up in a plethora of small braids, was darker too, though it had been bleached by the sun. And though she looked to be no older than eighteen, tiny crow's feet already marred the corners of her eyes even in slumber.

But even asleep, there was such a vitality hanging about her. This Zelda didn't sit quietly in her position of power. She wore her authority like a mantle, and he was sure everyone around her was attracted by its magnetism. The Wind was singing her praises to him.

He pulled up one of the chairs, sat it at the end of her bed and watched her sleep, waiting for her to wake. The Rito boy did the same.

There were many things to talk about when she woke.

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Link awoke in unfamiliar surroundings. He tried to sit up to better see what was around him, but a sharp bite of pain from his stomach stopped him from raising more than a couple inches. Now that the excitement was over and the adrenaline gone, he _hurt! _After he caught his breath, Link looked around the room as best he could.

The small room was made of golden oak wood that was glowing from the sunshine pouring in from a window framed with shabby, blue curtains. Aside from a chest sitting beneath the window, the only other piece of furniture in the room was the bed that lay beside his and a nightstand between them. He saw a patched keaton resting on its pillow. Rugs were scattered haphazardly on the floor and- wait, were those throwing knives on the chest? He blinked with surprise. Judging from the stuffed animal, he'd thought this was a child's room.

But then, only three years earlier, a child himself, he'd been traveling the Great Sea on his own and slaying fiends with the Master Sword. He was really not the person to ask what kids that age should be like.

He wondered if this was the room of the kid that had sat on his legs. He couldn't remember much of him other than bright vermillion eyes that were somehow familiar, a memory just out of reach.

The door opened and Lady Ira stepped in carrying a tray of food and bandages. "I see you're awake. It's your own fault you passed out again, you know. You shouldn't have tried to get in the bed on your own."

Link snorted and flashed a smile at the priestess. "Forgive me for underestimating the strength of a small boy and an old woman."

Lady Ira set the tray on the nightstand and swatted at his head with a bark of a laugh. "Speak for yourself, boy. You're only a couple of years older than him." She smiled warmly, deepening the lines around her mouth and eyes. "Sheik's a strong lad for his age. And a bit old for his age too if you ask me," she added ruefully.

Link tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

She smiled at him. "You'll find out soon enough, I expect. Since this is his room, you'll be spending plenty of time with him. Now let's take a look at that little scrape of yours." She yanked down the sheets with a single swift jerk and Link let out a yelp from the sudden chill.

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AN: That's a bit short, but I'll be damned if I can write long things. :makes a face: I'll try better next time. ADHD and college got to me. -;;


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: And part 3. Given the characters' age spread, don't expect much more than a simple, innocent romance to come out of this. The idea I have is _massive_, though. I wouldn't doubt that it could cover a couple years of their lives. But if it doesn't, there will probably be fun adventures to follow and a more solid romance. However, this story needs to be written first.

Summary: Link and Co. are stranded on the Goddess Isles where Sheik is conveniently located, and eventual grand adventure/save the world stuff, sexual confusion, and cuteness. And, well, angst too… but that's really a given… and why is there a can of ginger ale in my bed?

Disclaimer: And to the poor, throw the monkeys.

Additional note: Still unbeta-ed… but not from lack of wanting!

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Chapter 3-

Sheik sat up straighter when he noticed Zelda was beginning to wake up. She murmured sleepily and rubbed her eyes, slowly opening them to gaze around the room. When her eyes settled on him, she shot up, a snarl already upon her lips. Except she didn't quite make it up all the way. Zelda curled in on herself and clutched her head, gritting words between her teeth that should have made the paint peal off the walls as her braids swayed in front of her, hiding her face.

After a couple seconds of shock at hearing his Princess use such language (where in the Goddess's names did she learn things like _that?_), Sheik got up from his seat and shuffled over to her side. He rested his hand lightly on her back. "Are you okay, my Lady?"

She froze underneath his hand. Her head turned slowly towards him, her eyes so wide the blue was a mere speck of an island in an ocean of white. "How can—_YOU!_" Her eyes narrowed and she clutched the sheets so tightly in her hands her knuckles shone through.

"You remember."

"Damn straight I remember," she growled, and then smirked arrogantly at him. "Who could forget the Goddesses' little puppet?"

Sheik frowned. "I'm not their puppet. I'm their avatar. I do what they can't in this world." What had gotten into her? Why was she acting so _hostile _towards him?

During the era of the Hero of Time, she had never been like this towards him. Zelda had been a pleasant companion during those years, always polite and extremely insightful. She had never acted bitter about having to all but give up those years of her life; Zelda had always understood the necessity of her safety at all costs, even if the costs were to herself.

Maybe something had happened afterwards? He knew nothing of what had happened after Zelda had reentered the world. He had died in that moment. That was what had been planned, though. He was not only to be the Hero's guide, but also the host to Princess Zelda's entire being. And when she felt the time was right, she would take over and the reestablishment of her form would destroy him.

It was what the Goddesses had meant to be.

Where was his Lady in this jaded young woman?

Zelda flipped her hand nonchalantly. "Puppet, avatar… it all amounts to the same thing. You're nothing but their mindless servant."

The Rito boy coughed from where he was, still at the foot of the bed. He shifted uncomfortably as two sets of eyes turned on him, one the cold blue fire of his Captain's, the other the eerie color of rubies in the sun. "Captain, ma'am, do you want me to make him leave?"

She raised a knuckle to her chin in a delicate motion and gazed down in thought, ignoring Sheik's pleading looks. "No," she said finally said, tucking a couple of braids behind her ear and causing her earrings to chime melodiously. "I think we need to have a… _talk._ Stand outside the door, Komali, and make sure no one disturbs us."

Komali stood up straight and saluted smartly. "Yes, ma'am!" He left the room and closed the door quietly behind him.

Zelda smiled. "Good man. Best Sailing Master I ever had. And he doesn't ask many questions. Now then," she gingerly got out of the bed and paced to the far side of the room, facing away from him, "what am I going to do with you?" She glanced coldly over her shoulder at him.

Sheik tilted his head. "My Lady, why are you acting this way? What have I done to you?"

She slammed her fist into the wall. "Don't act like you don't know! Don't act like you don't know what happened," she growled. She pulled a knife from a sheath on her thigh and stalked towards him. "I should slit your god damned throat and see what your Goddesses think of that. I think it's a fair trade, their slave for my ship and my men."

Sheik couldn't move, frozen completely in shock, as his Lady rested the point of the dagger on his adam's apple, drawing a bead of blood that slowly trailed down to the collar of his shirt. But he was not afraid. Sheik had long since lost his fears of death and pain. "Your Highness, Zelda, I _don't _know anything! I only know that a ship on fire was sited offshore and what the Wind told me." He stared up into her eyes, his own begging her to believe him. He didn't mind death, but this life was one he didn't want to leave yet.

She looked at him curiously and withdrew the knife an inch, then raised it and rested the flat of the tip on her chin. "The Wind talks to you?" She bit down on the tip of the blade. "And you know nothing of what happened?" She gave him a look that told of dire consequences if he lied to her.

Sheik breathed a sigh of relief and nodded. He made a note to himself never to get her mad.

"And what did the Wind tell you?"

"It said the Hero was coming and…'on flame he rides'." Sheik paused. Why hadn't he remembered that? And his dream, and the Prophecy…they were ringing inside his head now. The vision of Link's body on the shore filled his eyes. "What happened?"

Zelda took a deep breath and seemed to wilt as if a great weight were settling on her. "Things were going so smoothly… it wasn't too hard to find places to restock our supplies with Komali flying ahead of us to scout." She glanced over at him. "He spotted these islands two days ago. We had just sited land from our ship when fire started to rain from the sky. It really was like rain, just tiny drops of flame dripping from the sky and hissing on the water." She let out a bitter laugh. "There was nothing we could do. The sails were the first to set on fire. Thank the Goddes- no, _fuck _the Goddesses. The sails burned slow, or we probably never would have made it close enough to land." She sheathed her knife, walked to one of the chairs still at the foot of her bed and sat down heavily. "There was a woman in red dancing in the fire."

Sheik started to tremble, fearing what she would say next. "No…"

The Wind whispered the trailing edge of the Prophecy to him.

_"…she will dance in flame_

_'til the stars cry halt…"_

She kept talking, not noticing his discomfort. "She landed on the ship and laughed at us. She said we were going to die soon and there was nothing we could do. And then she blew up all the longboats except for one." Zelda wrapped her arms around herself and shivered. "The look she gave us was so dark… she said she left one because she knew that not all of us would fit. It would be fun seeing us fight over who would take it. Then she came up to me and whispered in my ear, 'If you survive, tell Sheik his mother says hello.' I think she hit me into the mast." She shook her head, grimaced, and rubbed her temples. "I can't remember anything after that."

Sheik's legs gave out from under him and he fell to the floor. His- his- _Din _had done something so awful? Proud, vivacious Din who in spite of all her bravado was just as gentle-hearted as her sisters… he couldn't believe it.

When he had first been created, she would take him down to Hyrule to show him the land and the stars at night. He could still see her sitting in the branches of a tall tree looking to the sky. "The stars look so much warmer from down here." She'd look down at him and smile widely and come help him climb up before he knew how. When he was small enough, Din would sit with him in her lap and they'd watch the stars together. She'd turn Sheik's face towards her and look at him with such pride. "You got those eyes from me, you know."

No, this couldn't be Din. Not the Din that sang him to sleep, or showed him the correct way to hold a staff. _Never._

But, if he thought about it… this life had been strange. He hadn't been given a mission. And always, a few years before he was reborn, his mothers would wake him up and show him what had changed, and while they got him ready for his new life they doted so much on him that he never doubted that he was loved, even if he was, like Zelda said, more their servant than their son. Not this time. This time when he awakened, he was already in a living body. A two-year-old living body. Why had he never questioned it? Was this the reason why? Was something wrong with his mothers?

And Zelda knew what Din looked like. She would know. She'd never be able to mistake anyone else for Din.

But…

"No." He clenched his hand so hard his nails drew blood. "I won't believe it. She would never _never_-" His breath hitched in his throat and his eyes itched to shed tears. He couldn't remember the last time he'd cried.

"Well, she just did."

He heard the sound of her chair scraping the floor when Zelda stood as if from a great distance. The blood rushing past his ears and his heart pounding in his chest were almost all he could hear as he tried to keep his gasping breath from turning into anything more.

Sheik found himself being drawn into a warm embrace. He wrapped his arms around her and clutched the back of her vest desperately. Callused fingered gently raked through his hair as he pressed his face against her stomach. "I won't believe it," he whimpered softy, "I can't- I just can't..." He wouldn't cry, he wouldn't cry…

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Tetra looked down at the shaking child in her arms, the person whose body she had at one time shared, and couldn't bring herself to hate him quite as much. When he had broken down she couldn't help but try to comfort him. A mother's instinct, no matter from how long ago, never goes away.

Oh, she still hated him. Hated him because she was sure it was his fault Link, the old one, hadn't stayed safe in the castle with her.

Adventurers die young.

She supposed Sheik couldn't help but be so…_inspirational_, for lack of a better word. Bards always were. He taught Link to follow his heart, and he did. Right out of her life.

She had Link back, in a way. He was two years younger than her, and it was obvious he had a crush on her, but it just wasn't the same. He was a different person now, and so was she. Their chance, if they ever had one, had been a lifetime ago.

Not that she had any intention of deterring Link's infatuation. It was good for her ego and wasn't doing either of them any harm.

Tetra felt a wetness slowly seep through her shirt. Her eyes widened in surprise. She hadn't thought he'd been that affected. When they'd shared the same body, they hadn't shared thoughts, but they could talk to each other in a fashion. They'd talked for hours about all sorts of things, and Sheik had usually been calm and collected, sometimes passionate, sometimes a little worried. But even during their darkest moments he had such faith in his Goddesses and he had never come close to despair.

She had just broken his faith.

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AN: I wanted to make this longer, but this just seemed like a good ending spot. And I'm lazy.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: I am now on a campaign to make my chapters longer! No more will innocents have to suffer my short chapter wrath! ….if anyone suffered. I just know that whenever I find titty-bitty chapters I feel shorted, so I feel like a bit of a douche doing it myself, especially at the pace that I write. This chapter's goal: 3,000 words. Not much, really, but more than my other chapters so far, so it's a start. I'll make them get progressively longer as I get used to writing progressively longer things. Anywho… part four!

Disclaimer: Nullus Mei. ((Phear my bad Latin skillz)) The information about the meanings of lapis lazuli was found on various websites, none of which I can remember.

Additional Note: As always, plea for beta.

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Chapter 4-

Link dreamed.

In his dreams he saw a forest, a volcano, a lake. He saw a desert, a tomb, a temple. He saw a dark castle reaching towards the blackened heavens, surrounded by a stream of fire.

On a rock in a sea of mist, he saw himself. He was sitting on the rock, one knee raised almost to his chest. In his hands was an instrument, not too dissimilar from a flute. As he played, a lullaby that carried sweetly through the surrounding air, light played off swirls of blue and star-like flecks of gold on the instrument.

But this was not himself.

This other self was older, perhaps Tetra's age, but dressed in clothes like those that his grandmother had given him three years ago. There were a few differences. The brown, fingerless leather gloves for one. The golden gauntlets for another. The stitching of the cloth was more intricate, and the fit better; he wore the clothes as if they were a part of him. Silver hoops hung glistening from his ears.

The other Link's melody came to an end, the last note hanging in a curtain around them even as he drew the instrument away from his lips. He turned his eyes towards Link and smiled a little. "You've never come this far before."

Link blinked. "Where am I?"

The other Link stood and walked smoothly to him. The mist parted before his feet and tendrils rose to caress his boots and legs before retreating. He held the instrument in front of Link, letting him examine it. "An ocarina. It's made from a single piece of lapis lazuli." He shook his head and smiled ruefully. "Do you have any idea how long it took to find that out? It was only found in a land far across a great sea. It's a stone of royalty and is said to strengthen the mind and bring spiritual awareness." He tossed the ocarina lightly into the air and caught it. "If you think about it, it makes sense."

Link reached out hesitantly to touch it, but the other Link drew it away. "You're not ready yet. Even though you've made it this far, you're not ready." He rested a couple fingers on Link's chin and raised it gently so their eyes met. "I have demons you couldn't imagine." The other Link's solemn eyes, far too ancient for the young face, held a vague, haunted look.

"I- I don't understand. Where am I? Who are you...? You're not me- but," Link shook his head. "…I don't understand."

The other Link smiled sadly. "You will, in time." He tilted his head slightly and leaned forward to brush his lips against Link's. "I look forward to your next visit, Hero of Winds."

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Link woke abruptly and touched his lips with shaking fingers. "…what the _hell _was _that_!" he whispered harshly to himself.

A muffled sniff drew his attention to his right. A boy was on the other bed, lying curled around the stuffed keaton and trying to stifle his crying by pressing his face into the animal's belly. It was a hard to see him in the dying light of evening.

"Hey, kid, you okay?"

The boy – oh, what did that woman say his name was?- shot up from the bed wide-eyed and tried in vain to hide the keaton behind his back. "Y-yeah. I'm fine." He sniffed and wiped his face on his sleeve. "Did I wake you up?" he asked, his tear-reddened eyes almost pleading him to say 'no'. "I'm sorry if I did…there was just no other place to go and-"

Link waved his hand. "No, no. You didn't wake me."

The boy breathed a sigh of relief. "Good." He took the keaton out from behind him and set it on the bed. He caught Link's amused look and blushed. "Not a word."

Link laughed softly, fearing retaliation from his stomach if he did more, and decided to let it rest. For now. "What's your name? The old lady mentioned it, but I can't remember."

"Sheik," the boy said, smiling a little. He crawled onto the bed and leaned over to light a lamp resting on the nightstand with a box of matches he had pulled from his pocket.

The light reflected off of Sheik. His skin, though a couple of shades darker than Link's own, was still amazingly pale for someone who must spend much of his time outside. His rumpled, corn-fair hair created a halo around his head. Sheik looked like he was made of spun sunlight, and his sanguine eyes glowed with a light all their own. Otherworldly.

Link stared, captivated by the illusion created by a simple lamp.

Sheik coughed and looked away, a hint of blush high on his cheeks. "What's yours?"

"Huh? Oh, Link." Sheik stared at him as if he'd just grown two heads. "What? It's not like it's a really weird name." Yeesh, what was his problem? He moved on to a new subject. "Hey, those knives over there- are they yours?" Link was curious, and now was as good of a time to ask as any.

"Knives?" Sheik sounded confused.

Link pointed to the throwing knives still resting on the chest.

"I thought I'd put those away...," the boy mumbled to himself. He shrugged. "Yeah, those are mine."

"You any good?"

"About as good as fish are at swimming," Sheik replied confidently.

Link raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "Prove it."

Shiek grinned. "All in good time. I'll wait until you can go outside again."

Link shivered. Those words brought back the echo of those last spoken by his other self in his dream.

_"In time…"_

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Tetra and Komali sat on the floor of her room with the food Sheik had brought earlier spread between them.

Komali bit into a vegetable pastry and made a contented little chirp. "That boy was right. This is much better than anything the tavern was offering."

Tetra nodded. "The very _smell _of that stuff was making me sick." She nibbled on a slice of cheese. "Komali, what made you let him into my room?"

The Rito closed his eyes in thought. "I can't put my finger on it…it was almost like I was compelled. I felt like I should, so I did. I'm sorry, my Captain. I was careless." He bowed his head.

"No," Tetra shook her head, "Don't worry about it. That's just how he is. Or was. I was just curious if it was the same way." She grinned a little. "I swear, Sheik could convince the sun not to set and the stars not to shine while saying almost nothing at all."

"You didn't seem to like him much."

Tetra raised a thin eyebrow. Now that was tact. It was true when she had told Sheik that Komali didn't ask many questions. Instead he stated what he wanted to know in such a way that most people didn't even know he had requested something from them. "Was it that obvious?" she asked dryly. "I thought I was being polite."

"Hm," he said noncommittally, and sipped at his cold tea. "Last time I checked, ma'am, 'puppet' and 'mindless servant' aren't polite ways to address someone."

She chucked a roll at him. "You're impossible."

"It's the inbreeding."

Tetra snickered and took a bite of her pastry. "Makes sense," she said while chewing. "You know," Tetra said softly, in a more serious tone, "you're my First Mate now."

"_WHAT_! Ma'am, surely-"

She cut him off with a wave of her hand. "No. Gonzo's dead" she closed her eyes as a wave of grief rolled over her and suppressed a shiver, "and I want _you _to replace him."

"Ma'am, with all due respect, there are others _much _more qualified than me. I've only been with you for three years! The rest of the crew won't like it. Even Link would be a better choice."

"No, no he wouldn't. Link is many things, but not a leader. Never a leader. You, Komali, have been trained to lead people your entire life. I mean, have you heard yourself talk? It's like listening to a damn diplomat sometimes." She rolled her eyes. "You'd have to do double-duty, I'm not willing to give you up as my Sailing Master." She reached over and took one of his hands in both of her own. "Komali, you've learned almost everything there is to know about running a ship. I've never seen anyone more suited to it, and I'd be proud to have you as my First Mate."

"But- but- I'm only _fourteen_!" he said desperately.

"And I became Captain when I was twelve. Your point?"

Komali whimpered. "Nothing's going to change your mind."

"No." Tetra knew she had won. She had known before she'd even said anything.

He bowed his head. "I accept, my Captain."

"Now that's over," she reached for a berry tart, "did you see what was on his hand?"

"There was something imprinted in pure gold. The Legendary Triforce of the Goddesses." He looked confused. "It couldn't have been the real thing, though I have never seen a shade of gold that real on a person's skin."

She sipped her glass of cider thoughtfully. "It was. There's no doubt in my mind that was the Triforce." She shifted and rested her weight back on one arm. "But that raises a couple of interesting questions, doesn't it? Why has the Triforce stayed together? Why has it gone to him instead of the Goddesses? Did it forsake the Goddesses because Din has been corrupted, or did Din become corrupt because the Triforce forsook them?"

"I don't know." Komali took a bite from a tart of his own. "This 'Sheik' must be special for you to not ask 'Who is he to receive the Triforce?'" he said carefully, as though weighing each word before he spoke it.

Tetra snorted. "You heard what he called himself. He's their avatar. No, more than that really. He's their son. You wouldn't know it from how he's treated, though. Sheik really is little more than their puppet. The Goddesses are unable to make little differences in the world. Their presence alone can bring great change."

"So they created someone to do the small things for them," Komali finished.

Tetra nodded. "Precisely. He's led armies, and been an advisor to kings, among other things. He created the way of the Sheikah, though he told me that it didn't turn out quite as he had planned."

"I have been told that the Sheikah were a legendary tribe devoted to peace and the protection of the Royal Family of ancient Hyrule."

"Sheik called them 'a bunch of egotistical, narrow-minded twits'," Tetra laughed. "He said they were meant to be more like monks instead of a people who thought themselves more blessed than anyone else because of how easily they could kill a man. No matter how many times he got reborn with them, he could never fix it. The Sheikah didn't care that it was their _founder _who had problems with their ways."

Komali looked at her oddly. "I don't understand how you can act as though you dislike him, yet speak almost fondly of him."

"It's complicated."

"Ah."

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Sheik had walked back from the Gilded Fish in a daze. His mind was filled with betrayal, anger, and sadness; but mostly he felt fear. He was afraid for Din, for what she had become.

He had stumbled up the stairs leading to the temple more than once, scraping his knees. He'd snuck past Lady Ira up to his room, and had crawled into his bed to cry some more into Keaton. He hadn't even remembered that Link was in the bed next to his.

The Wind caressing his hair did little to console him.

When Link asked him if he was alright, the shock he got had calmed down the turbulent seas in his mind. He found himself acting like someone his age should, stuttering and hiding his tears in shame. It had been to his utter horror to realize he was still holding Keaton, albeit behind his back. _Especially _behind his back. Link had laughed, and the warm sound had been a balm to his nerves, more relieving than any of the crying.

Sheik had crawled back onto his bed and leaned over to light his lamp. Since both of them were awake, there was really no point in sitting in the dying light. For some reason, Link had stared at him until Sheik, certain that he was blushing, had coughed and continued their small talk.

He had been almost floored to learn Link's name was actually still Link. Zelda's name had changed, so he'd assumed Link's had too. After all, unlike himself, they were true reincarnations. Zelda -he could never think of his Lady as anything other than Zelda- had only gotten back her old self's memories because she had needed them to unlock her power. Link had no idea of his past at all. This was the way of true reincarnations; rebirth of the soul and the heart, but not the mind. Except in certain cases, of course. There were always exceptions to every rule. Those souls that had been chosen by the Triforce were a special lot and circumstances sometimes forced their old memories to the surface.

After a couple of minutes spent on the subject of Sheik's knives, their conversation hit an awkward silence.

"So, um," Sheik shifted 'til he was sitting cross-legged, "do you need anything? Food? Something to drink?"

Link swallowed and coughed. "Water, please."

"Okay. I'll be right back." Sheik got up and trotted downstairs.

"Oh, there you are," said Lady Ira from where she was folding bandages and preparing poultices at the kitchen table. "You were at the Inn a long time."

Sheik looked away. "Yeah…"

"Sheik, love, is something wrong?"

He looked back up and caught her worried gaze. There was no way he could tell her. Sheik bit his lip and shook his head. "No, nothing. I need to get some water for Link," he said, walking to the ceramic barrel that he filled everyday from the well.

"That lad's a handful. It's going to be your job to take care of him."

Sheik turned towards her. "What? Why? Not that I mind, but…"

"We only have a couple of other people we need to take care of, but they're so covered with burns –we've already had to take the leg off one poor man- that all of the rest of us are needed just to keep them _clean_. That gut wound of Link's is dangerous, but you alone should be able to take care of him." She handed him a couple of the poultices she had just made. "It's probably time to change those again."

Sheik nodded and turned to fill a glass from a spout attached to the water barrel. "I'll go do that now."

Lady Ira smiled. "There's a good lad."

Sheik walked back up the stairs glass in one hand, poultices in another. He opened the door with his foot, "We're in for a bit of fun."

Link turned his head. "Oh?" Sheik held up the poultices silently. "Oh." Link groaned.

Sheik walked over to him, set the poultices on the nightstand, and wormed an arm beneath his shoulders. "Drink some water first, in case you pass out." He lifted Link only just enough that he was able to drink from the glass without spilling any on himself. When Link was done, Sheik set the remaining water on the nightstand. He reached to the drawer and pulled out some bandages and adhesive. "I hurt myself a lot," he said to Link's questioning look.

He pulled the sheets down to just below Link's waist and pulled up a shirt that had probably come from his collection of hand-me-downs. He peeled the weak adhesive from bandages holding the old poultice to his stomach and stripped it off as gently as he could, which still left Link gritting his teeth.

Sheik eyed still swollen stitches with distaste. He sighed and poured some water on one of the smaller bandages to wipe them clean.

"How does it look?" Link asked.

"Clean." He pressed the poultices to the wound, making Link hiss, and secured it with the bandages and adhesive. Light glinted off the Triforce, and in the next second he found himself pulled off his feet towards the head of the bed. He landed badly on his scraped knees and muffled a startled cry in his hand.

Callused fingers tickled the back of his hand where the Triforce was embedded. "Why do you have this?" Link asked in a brittle voice. Another hand gripped his wrist in a hold almost tight enough to make his bones scrape together.

Sheik growled and twisted his hand out of Link's grip. He skittered over to the other side of his bed and glared. He rubbed his sore wrist with his fingers, soothing the pain away. "That was a bit of an overreaction," he said coldly.

"With the Triforce, nothing is an overreaction."

"Tell that to my wrist," Sheik muttered to himself.

"Why do you have it?"

Sheik didn't know how to answer. He didn't know the reason. It had just come to him.

But the Wind offered a reply, the answer to a question that he had never asked aloud.

"To keep it safe."

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AN: Yay!


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: Sorry this took so long. I've had no less than five exams, two papers, and a project in the last two weeks. And… well… the driving need to get my subjob in FFXI completely overwhelmed me. Well, this was pulled directly from my ass so enjoy! Also… I can't find any screenshots for the Lost Woods or the area outside the Forest Temple… bear with me plz!

Disclaimer: Up yours, lawyers!

Additional Note: Beeetaaaaaa…. :CRY:

Editing Note: GOD that first dream sequence was forced and annoying. Well, to be fair only one word of it was. What the hell was I thinking! So changing that. ….though that sets my happy yaoi goodness (…the good kind, not the clone kind. …though clone kind could be good too) back a bit.

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Chapter 5-

They'd gone to sleep shortly after, both feeling awkward about the confrontation. Link had tried to get Sheik to tell him more, but when he couldn't get any answers he just settled back in his pillows in a huff and fell into a pained doze.

Sheik had stared at the ceiling for many hours not knowing what to think of the revelation the Wind had brought him before he too fell into an uneasy sleep.

Both were troubled by their dreams.

Sheik stood on a beach. It was not like those of his home on Keena; no fine, warm white sand, no luxurious tropical forests coming to just the edges of the cliffs that lined the beaches.

This beach was cold and dead, and the harsh wind cut into him deeply. The ground was rocky and barren and the cloud-covered sky bathed everything in a harsh grey light, deepening the shadows around him. The water looked like foamy steel coming to lap at his feet.

This was the first time he had been set directly into one of his dreams. Usually he just saw flashes of things, single images and sparks of insight.

He looked around and, not finding anything otherwise interesting, began walking along the coastline, his arms wrapped around himself for warmth. Far ahead, just enough so that he couldn't see it clearly, a vague greenish shape was forming. He at first took it to be some plant in the distance, but as he got closer he realized it couldn't be; the green was too uniform. It was another couple of minutes before his mind registered that it was a body. Sheik's pace sped up to a run.

He arrived at Link's crumpled form at a dead run and almost fell over trying to stop in time. Link cracked open one of his depthless blue eyes and parted his blood-stained lips in a welcoming smile. "Sheik…you came back."

Sheik fell to his knees and suddenly his body was not his own. Words fell out of his mouth that he didn't tell it to say. "Shhh…of course I came back. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." His hand reached out and brushed dirty blond hair away from Link's face. "I should never have left you. I didn't mean it… I didn't… I didn't know...please forgive me… I swear I didn't..." There was a begging tone to his voice that he'd never heard before.

Link reached up, trembling, and placed his hand behind Sheik's neck. "I know. I knew it wasn't really-" He turned his head and wracking coughs took him and flecks of blood appeared on the ground.

"Link-!"

A thunderous neigh echoed around them. In the flash of the brightest flame a giant horse, a mare, stood quivering with tension in the shallows of the sea that still lapped at them. The water steamed and hissed around the mare's twelve hooves. Astride the horse was Din, resplendent in dripping crimson armor ("There's only one reason anyone wears red to fight, my son: to hide the blood."), claymore poised and ready in her gloved hand, her hair blowing back in the wind like a banner.

"My own flesh and blood…how _dare _you defy me!"

The Wind screamed around him, drowning out the thunderous surf and his mother's furious cries as she kneed the mare to charge.

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Sheik sat up in the dark, panting and covered with sweat. He groped around on the bed for Keaton, needing that small amount of comfort. If he'd had any doubts about Din before, seeing her like that…

And Link…

What had happened to Link?

Sheik glanced over to where Link was sleeping, his face showing signs of pain that he wouldn't let show while he was awake, and thought about what was said and what had happened in his dream.

Maybe the dream had been more of a warning than a prophecy? A warning not to leave Link. And maybe a warning not to trust his mother.

But what was it that he had said…? What hadn't he known…what was it that he had really done that he had almost been in tears over?

A wave of confusion bordering on pain caused him to clutch Keaton tightly to his chest. "What I am a meant to do…?" he whispered into the dark, not expecting an answer even from the Wind.

Sheik didn't get one.

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Link was at the rock again, his other self playing a soft tune that sounded almost romantic. As he listened, the tune was subtly changed to a bright waltz. A shift in key and tone, a beautiful work of transition, and it was now fit for a funeral.

"Where am I?" he asked, interrupting the other Links song. It was the first question he'd asked last time; none of his questions had been answered.

His other self chuckled as he lowered the ocarina from his mouth. "You still don't know?" He brought the ocarina back to his mouth and played a couple of bars from the waltz. In a flash of green the area around them became a desolate clearing lined with crumbling walls. He slid off the rock and walked past Link towards a dilapidated staircase.

"Damn it, why won't you tell me?" Link asked, frustrated. He followed at the other Link's heels down the weed-ridden stairs.

Other-Link ran his fingers through his bangs and sighed, obviously amused. "I've gotten so rude!" He turned to face Link, smiling. "Where else would you be but in your soul?" He reached over and grabbed one Link's bare hands in a gloved one of his. "I think it's still too soon for this, but there's not enough time to wait. I'm going to take you on a journey of your soul." Other-Link's eyes glinted with good humor. "Coincidentally, it looks exactly like Old Hyrule. This is the Lost Woods. Where we just were was the entrance to the Forest Temple and where I'll take you now is the Kokiri Village."

"Forest Temple…"

"You've only been to the Earth and the Wind Temples, right? Once there were six others: Forest, Fire, Water, Shadow, Spirit, and Time." He paused. "Do you find it strange that the only two temples you went to were Farore's?"

Link blinked and shook his head. "Isn't Earth Din's domain?"

Other-Link turned to him and squeezed his hand. "It depends what definition of Earth you use. The Earth that makes up the structure of the world is Din's." He knelt down and pulled up a weed. "But this Earth," he motioned to the dirt clinging to the roots of the weed, "this living Earth is Farore's."

"Why would that make a difference?"

"It takes courage to live, Hero of Winds."

"Oh."

"Let's get moving." Other-Link stood back up and led Link through a labyrinth of crumbling walls and then through the biggest logs he'd ever seen. Wisps of yellow light few around them and danced in the air with the floating pollen and dandelion seeds. "Welcome to the Kokiri Village," he said as they walked out of the last log. "It's empty now…someday you'll see how it was."

Link looked down at the hand that was gripping his. It was slender and elegant, but the calluses that brushed his palm spoke of training and battles. That more than anything, though he couldn't put his finger on the reason why, made all that Other-Link had said more truthful, gave it more meaning. Those calluses sparked his first feelings of respect towards this stranger who had his body.

Other-Link pointed off in the distance. "That tree over there is where I used to live. And over there, next to it, was Saria's until she awoke as Sage of the Forest."

Something about that sparked a memory in Link's mind…a part of an old legend. "Sages…six Sages? For the six Temples?" Other-Link nodded. "Then..." Things clicked in Link's mind. The Sages, the origins of the clothes his grandmother had given him. The Hero in the legends. "You're the Hero of Time, aren't you?"

A voice came from behind. "He _does _have a brain! Bra-_vo_!" Clapping echoed around them. Other-Link's shoulders slumped a fraction as he turned almost hesitantly to face their new companion. He was a twin of Other-Link, but darker. Dressed in the deepest of blacks, skin a darkened shade of caramel, and hair just a few shades darker he was the earthen shadow of Other-Link.

"What are you doing here…? You're not supposed to be here yet."

"Link, babe, you _know _I do what I want." He leaned over and patted Other-Link's cheek condescendingly.

Link glanced between the two of them. "Who are you?" he asked the Link-in-Black.

"I," he bowed, "am one of our dear friend's 'demons'. You can just call me Dark-Link to make things easier."

Other-Link looked at Link resignedly. "Ganon created him to fight me in the Water Temple from the darkness in my heart."

"And after he beat me, I just went back to where I came from. But the Dark Lord had given me the gift of self awareness. I thought it would be more fun to remain separated and tease our little Hero instead of merging completely back with him." Dark-Link leaned against the cliff wall that the entrance to the Lost Woods was set into and crossed his arms nonchalantly. "I guess in the end it was a 'good' thing." He said the word like it left a bad taste in his mouth. "It's easier to ignore your… _baser_ impulses if they actually speak to you." He grinned and winked at Other-Link. "I guess you should thank me, babe!"

Other-Link calmly reached out with the hand that did not now have a death-grip on Link's and calmly flipped Dark-Link off.

Dark-Link smirked. "Later, babe. When the kid's gone."

Other-Link ran his fingers through his bangs and looked away, flustered. "I can't do this. Why have I never been able to get used to you?" he shook his head and looked to Link. "You should leave now. I'll be more ready for him next time." The world began to shift around Link, the colors began to melt together. "Oh, Link, I left you a couple gifts!" The world dissolved into a nothing more than shades of green.

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Link woke to a soft, thrumming melody. He was immediately relaxed by its familiarity. It was like what Other-Link was playing at the beginning of his dream, only more rolling. A wave of melodious chords instead of a single sweet refrain.

His eyes snapped open.

The same…?

Why did it seem that everything in this last day gone back to his dreams?

He looked around the room and saw Sheik sitting on the windowsill gazing through the glass, his fingers running over the strings of a harp without thought; he certainly wasn't looking at what strings he was playing.

Link raised a hand to wipe the grit from his eyes and got a second shock.

Other-Link's gloves were now on his hands.

That was it…oh, that was it.

"Why?"

The harp's music cane to a stuttering halt.

"Why do you know that song? Why are these gloves here? What the hell is going on! Haven't I been through enough!" Sheik was at his side a bare instant later, his hand cool on his forehead as he checked his temperature. "I don't have a damn temperature! You see the gloves!" He raised his hands up, displaying the brown, leather fingerless gloves. "They weren't here last night. And the song… he was playing it too! In the dream…" Link was well aware he was rambling and cracking up, but he didn't care. Somehow this was far stranger than what he had gone through before, talking boat notwithstanding.

Sheik moved his hand 'til his fingers were resting in Link's hair. "Dreams. Who are in your dreams?" Link glared at him. "I'll answer you if you answer me."

Link sighed. "There's someone who looks like me. He's older, but his name is the same as mine. I've only seen him twice, the first time was yesterday, and each time he was playing a blue thing he called an 'ocarina'. Today there was another guy who looked like me and he called himself 'Dark-Link'." Link paused. "I think the first me was the Hero of Time." He felt stupid saying that. How could the Hero of Time possibly be in his dreams. And look like him too? That was certainly egotistical. "He didn't deny it, anyways. And 'Dark-Link' said I was right."

Sheik shifted nervously and looked off to the side, away from Link's eyes. "That probably was the Hero of Time."

Link stared at him. "How could _you _possibly know?" There was something odd about this boy, something he couldn't put his finger on. More than seeming "old for his age" as Lady Ira had put it, though he had to admit that she was more than right about that.

"Reincarnation," he said simply, and Link accepted it. Tetra was proof it could exist. He couldn't wait to see her again. "I have a long memory, and I suppose you could say I knew Link. It's very obvious you share the same soul." Sheik smiled. "There can only be one Hero." He turned his eyes back towards Link. "But…who is Dark Link? I don't know of him."

Link stretched a little and hissed as his stitched pulled. He blinked back the spots from his eyes as he spoke. "I think he said that Ganon created him from the Hero of Time's darkness, or something like that. And when his body was defeated, he went back to where he'd come from."

Sheik frowned. "He never said anything about this. But then, it wasn't my place to talk with him."

"How did you know him?"

"I was his guide to the Temples. He doesn't really know I existed, though."

It was Link's turn to frown. "How could he not know you existed?"

Sheik shifted his weight from foot to foot awkwardly. "He kind of thought I was Zelda in disguise," he said sheepishly.

Link blinked at him. "I have to hear about this."

Sheik laughed. "If you think I went around in a dress, you're very wrong. It was more like a poof of smoke and then Zelda was there instead of me. But after that I was gone, so I don't know if he ever found out. We planned it so he never would. But…if he's awake in there," he poked Link's forehead, "he knows now."

"I don't know if he sees through my eyes or not."

"Tell him, then. It's time there were no secrets between any of us. I don't think we'll be able to afford them soon.

Link looked down and caught sight of the gloves. It was uncanny how natural they felt on his hands. "But what about the gloves? Why are they here?"

Sheik sat on the edge of Link's bed and his eyes narrowed in thought. "Maybe…you're merging?"

Link frowned and turned his head on his pillow. Wait…was there something under there? He reached his hand under and drew out a potion. "…what…?"

Sheik looked at the potion incredulously. "Where did that come from? There aren't any of the right ingredients to make those on _any _of the islands…"

"The… Other-Link said he left a couple of gifts…," Link said shakily. "This… this is getting to be too much."

Sheik took the potion out of Link's unsteady hand and opened it, smelling it for potency. "Well," he said practically, "now you won't be bedridden for a couple of weeks."

88888

AN: Yes… dreams are used as whores for plot progression. And yes… everyone seems far too giving of information. And yes, Dark Link is a man-ho. And yes, heavy revision is STILL needed. I swear no one is staying in character. Link's supposed to be more spunky. ….well, I guess if you're bedridden from impalement and are having freaky dreams where you're being molested by one clone of you and another clone of you is molesting the first clone you'd be a little less spunky too.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: WHEEE! Its been a hellalong time. …errr… I'm lazy. Thank you InuYasha for unwittingly sparking my reinterest in this, months later after I've watched History Channel specials on cannibalism and torture and am now getting an education in the Classics so I will be able to make their lives an even worse/interesting than I had already (sorta) planned.

….and yes, I have played OoT. …many times. Duh. …and I'm pretending that all Zelda games not specifically in the Oot-MM-WW continuum do not exist in this thing's history. …mostly because A Link to the Past is royally kicking my ass. (I don't know where to go!) and while I'm rather enthralled with Vaati from The Minish Cap (and Four Swords, though I don't have three buddies to play that with :pout: ), I gots no clue how that fits in with the above mentioned continuum. …if it does at all. ….and I've never played the Oracles games. I guess technically Link's Awakening could fit… maybe? It depends on if he goes back to Hyrule or not… well, that situation could happen. Hell if I know. Never got to the end of that one either. XD

Anywho!

…errr… and just noticed watching the trailer for the next LoZ game… Link's a lefty! Because really, who swings their sword and pulls back their bowstring with their weak arm?

…I'm gonna skip all title and other things since this is no longer on a mailing list… . 

Disclaimer: DIE!

0 –

Chapter 6-

_Clonk!_

Lady Ira shook her head. The boys were at it again. Ever since Link had found out her Sheik really did know how to use his weapons there'd been little peace at the Temple of Farore. When they weren't helping her with taking care of the patients (they were such good lads), Sheik was teaching Link how to fight with daggers. Plural. It seemed that their visiting warrior, though a master at one-weapon fighting, was miserable with two.

Lady Ira wasn't fond of violence, though she knew it was sometimes necessary, but it gave the lads something to do. And boys will be boys.

Thank Farore they were using wooden practice daggers.

Link sat down heavily on the ground, exhausted. Though the potion had healed his wound, it hadn't replaced his lost blood, halving his stamina. He also hadn't been sleeping well, but that was no surprise.

That didn't mean he wasn't enjoying his lessons, though. Quite the opposite. Link, ironically, had never had the courage to ask Tetra or any of the other pirates how to use knives. Therefore he'd spent the last three years with a phobia of close combat in confined spaces. The Biggoron Sword was fine and dandy if you had room to swing it, hell, if you had room to _draw _it, but, say, in a narrow hall with a low ceiling? He'd be a sitting duck. The best he'd be able to do is bash at them with his boomerang, or maybe stab them with an arrow. Bombs were out of the question. Hookshot? HA! The last thing he'd need is to bring his enemy _closer._

Yes, Link was _very _pleased to be learning how to use daggers.

Sheik sat down beside him. "Tired already?" he asked good-naturedly.

Link just grunted at him.

Sheik snickered. "You're getting better, but you need to remember you can use your dagger as a shield too." He demonstrated, turning the wooden dagger so the flat of it was resting along the entire length of his forearm. "You should try to guard, block, and parry as much as you can. Leave as little of yourself exposed as possible. Dodging will just leave you open."

Link sighed. "I miss my shield." His family's shield had been lost a year past during a storm. Not that he could use it anyways with his Biggoron Sword, but it had still been precious to him.

"You'll get used to it."

Link stood up, stretching. "Is it lunchtime yet?"

_"No!"_

Link's eyes widened as he turned to stare at the kitchen some yards behind him. The windows were open, but still, he hadn't been speaking loudly at all.

"She's like that." Sheik grinned at him and knelt down to pick up his shirt, which he had taken off earlier. "You should go rest. It's only been four days since you came, you _have _to still be tired."

"I don't want to sleep," Link murmured, almost to himself. He hadn't seen his other self or his dark self for the last couple of days but he was certain that wouldn't last for long. It had made his sleep restless and tense as he explored the deserted Kokiri village. He'd jumped at every shadow that moved and every twig that snapped.

"Link," Sheik said quietly, "I don't think the Hero of Time will hurt you."

"I'm not scared of being hurt." He took a shuddering breath. "I'm scared of changing." Link held up his hand, staring at the fingerless gloves that he no longer felt comfortable without. "What if, at the end of this, I'm not me?"

Sheik frowned in thought. "Maybe you should talk my Lady about it. She's gone through something similar, after all."

Link didn't know what to think about that. Link thought he and Tetra were close, but she wasn't exactly an easy person to talk to. Also…he hadn't even thought about what it must have been like for her. Did she go through this? Did she just get her memories back all at once? Hell, Link hadn't gotten back any memories at _all._

But Tetra had changed since herself as Zelda awoke, hadn't she. Maybe she would understand.

"I'll go talk with her."

88888

Tetra was sitting on the beach, taking a break from drawing up plans for a new ship, when Link came looking for her. He sat down beside her and they spent a while watching the waves crash upon the golden shores in companionable silence.

"Did you need something?"

Link started at the sudden break in silence. "Er, yes. There was something I wanted to talk to you about," he said softly. "I've been having strange dreams for a while. Months- nearly a year, I think."

Tetra felt her ears perk.

"In them I wander through Old Hyrule. It looks like what I saw when I went to get the Master Sword, so I think its Old Hyrule. Up until this week, all I'd been doing was wondering. I'd just wake up some place and set off from there. But, for some reason, I've never gone into any towns.

"But, right after we arrived here, I met him."

"Sheik?" Tetra asked.

Link shook his head. "No. Me. I met myself. And, and he's-" a pause, a breath, "-I think he's trying to turn me into him. I don't know what to do." He looked down towards the sand and dug out a shell with his fingers. "I'm scared," he said, brushing damp sand from the shell's ridges. "What if I get changed into someone who's not me? I don't want to change. I want to stay me. I don't want to disappear." Link tossed his shell into the sea and hugged his knees.

Tetra sighed and tugged at Link until he was lying on the sand with his head in her lap. She slipped the green bandanna off his head and stroked his hair. "It's not so bad," she said quietly. "It was hard reconciling everything, telling myself, for example, that when I was eight I was attending etiquette lessons as well as being taught by Mother the way to slit someone's throat without making them scream. That was the only trouble I had, though. Our personalities merged flawlessly." She scratched behind his ear thoughtfully. "Probably because we would have lived eachother's life the same way." Snort. "It doesn't help you. I got everything at once. He's…" she trailed off.

"Trying to turn me into him?" Link supplied helpfully, leaning into her hand.

"Hush." Tetra flicked his ear. "Link wasn't like that. He was a Hero, too. A less troublesome one. Quieter too." Tetra sighed and gazed at the sea. "Far too solemn for his age."

Link shifted so he could look up at her, watch her expressive face change as she remembered things fond, worrisome, distasteful. Her face could be read so easily when her guard wasn't up, as if she was trying to make up for the times she couldn't show what she felt.

She turned her dark blue eyes back down to Link, certainty glinting in them. "He's trying to protect you. He thinks if he gives you himself in small doses, you'll handle it better." Tetra smiled, "I apparently thought I'd do just fine getting a few more of me at once. Most likely there just wasn't enough time to do things gently." Her eyes unfocused as she returned to her mind and memories. "You're lucky."

"Hm?"

When Tetra didn't answer, Link reached up and tugged on a couple of her braids.

She blinked and shook her head a little. "You get to talk to him. I only saw him a few times after Ganon was defeated. The last was when he came to the castle to tell me he was going North to find out what real mountains were like." Tetra smiled bitterly, sadly. "For a few years I got letters from him. Then they stopped." She closed her eyes tightly. "It took a few more years for the news to filter down to us that he was dead. By that time no one knew the truth how. Or, really, if he had died. Some said he had walked into the Sacred Realm, or the Golden Land as the storyteller called it. Some said he'd died of a disease. Some said he drowned at sea. You get the picture."

Link nodded. "Maybe I can find out what happened."

Tetra smiled. "I'd like that. It would be good to know. It wouldn't change anything, but it'd be good to know." She ran a fingertip down the length of his nose.

He wrinkled his nose and fought back a sneeze.

Tetra ran her hand to cup his cheek. She squeezed her eyes shut to imprint him in her memory.

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AN: Eh. Short. I'M TRYING.


End file.
